This Newsweek investigation shows how dangerous Trump's business interests could be for America
A Donald Trump presidency could be deeply conflicted if he and his family don't permanently sever ties with the Trump Organization, a Newsweek investigation has found. While the Trump Organization brings multi-millions into the Trump family's pockets, it is also "an enterprise with deep ties to global financiers, foreign politicians, and even criminals," Newsweek writes, "although there is no evidence the Trump Organization has engaged in any illegal activities." Still, the findings raise serious concerns about what a Trump foreign policy might look like — and if it could potentially be bought:
Speaking to CNN, corporate law professor Richard Painter likened Trump's conflicting business interests to George Washington and Thomas Jefferson's plantations and slave holdings leading up the the Civil War. "The first few presidents had conflicts of interests that made it impossible for them to intelligently and ethically deal with the country's first moral dilemma. The fact that we failed to deal with that in 1789 created the greatest political crisis and war in our country's history," Painter said.
Specific examples of the conflict of interest between the Trump Organization and American foreign policy and national security are detailed for South Korea, India, the United Arab Emirates, Dubai, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Libya, Russia, and Ukraine, with Newsweek citing additional examples that were uncovered for China, Brazil, Bulgaria, Argentina, Canada, France, Germany, and a number of other countries. Read the whole exposé at Newsweek.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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